Thursday marks the 84th birth anniversary of the Ekushey Padak winner late national professor Anisuzzaman, one of the most prolific and respected Bangladeshi academics.

The Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) on Saturday said it is deeply shocked and saddened by the passing of its board member and National Professor Anisuzzaman.

I shall leave it to others to assess the loss to the nation, from the passing away of such a giant as National Professor Anisuzzaman. That in fact may be the most daunting task at hand, as we come to contemplate his unparalleled contribution in giving meaning, in shaping, and even, as only one as accomplished as him could, defining what it meant to be Bangladeshi. It is likely to beseech us for generations, for aeons, almost as long as the sheer weight of the man’s achievements made him hover over the nation’s conscience, for here was a man who in stature as well as behaviour, very clearly brooked no equal.